


Tea Leaves and White Pearls

by Noizchild



Series: Wasteland 2011 [5]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/M, Gen, Growing Up, Loss of Virginity, Love, Panic, Romance, Sex, Wasteland, Worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-03
Updated: 2016-03-03
Packaged: 2018-05-24 12:48:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 18,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6154204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noizchild/pseuds/Noizchild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Second volume up. One of three stories that follow my poem, "Wasteland 2011." Liao Ju tries to resist Wang Yao after her kiss last summer. Yet, temptation gets harder to resist and as a result, fireworks go off between the two. However, the wasteland is climbing its way the blossoming pair and the other countries in ways that they couldn't grasp.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Birthday, Yao, and Temptation

Tea Leaves and White Pearls

Match One: Birthday, Yao, and Temptation:

-Ju-

My name Liao Ju and today is my birthday. That's right; I'm going to be eighteen this year. That means I will now have full power over the clan. Fei-xiansheng and Hen-to-xiansheng will still be advising me. Yet, the paperwork will be handed over to me. In fact, I had to do some this morning to authorize that I was now in control of the clan from here until and I die. That sounds like fun!

Bah! Why am I thinking about work today?! It's my birthday. I should be thinking about fun and happy things! I don't want to be an "old lady" as Qian called me this morning. (I'm going to get the little jerk later. What made it worse was Szu was laughing at me as well. I'm going to get them both later on.)

Anyway, I will be eighteen, as I already said. In China, you are an adult when you reach that age. So, I am legally an adult now. Yet, Bik still calls me her baby. "You'll forever be a little girl to me," she told me. I forced myself to smile and nod at that. I can't complain; she practically raised me when I was baby. That reminds me; this will be my second birthday without my father. It's been a year since his death. So far, the clan is holding up rather well. I've been doing good myself. I'm in my senior year of high school and business is going smoothly for the first year under new leadership. Tonight, however, is a good day to party and relax.

This year, the girls of the clan and my female friends decided to pull a surprise on me after school. Tina kept asking me what I had planned for my birthday this year. I took a moment to think about that.

"I guess the usual with a nice dinner out," I said. Tina frowned at me.

"Anything else?" she asked. I took another moment to think about that. I frowned a bit.

"No?" I asked. Tina looked rather frustrated at my answer.

"Wrong!" she said. I blinked at her.

"Wrong?" I asked.

"Yes!" she shouted. "That's wrong"

"Why?" I asked. Tina leaned in close to my face, grinning.

"You'll have to see this evening!" she said. I blinked at her. _Okay, what are you plotting now?_

"Girls!" we heard Bik calling from the doorway. "Anyone want some treats?" Tina and I looked up to see her carrying a tray of fresh sweet buns.

"Kee just made these for the birthday girl and her friend," the lovely nurse went on. Tina sat up in surprise.

"Kee cooks?" she asked.

"Oh yes," I said. Bik chuckled.

"Cai's son may be a lazy bum, but that boy can certainly cook!" she said. "If he would only apply his skills to actually hitting the books." Bik set the tray on my desk. "I'll just leave these right here," she said. Then, she turned and walked out of the room. I couldn't help but notice her mouthing something at Tina before she left. Confused, I turned to my best friend.

"What did she say to you?" I asked.

"What?" Tina asked back. I shook my head at her. Instead, I crawled off my bed and picked up a bun. They were actually quite tasty. Kee outdid himself this time.

Six o'clock came around hours later. I stood before my mirror getting dressed.

"You done in there yet?" Mei yelled at me.

"Just about!" I yelled back.

"Come on!" she called. "I want to go now!"

"Stop rushing her! It's not about you!" I heard Qin yell at her daughter.

"I know that!" Mei yelled.

"Please!" I shouted. "Don't fight! Just get in the car and wait for me!"

"Alright!" mother and daughter said. I waited until I was sure they had left. I swear, those two get worse with each other as the years go on. Reminded me of my father and I at times, only we were much civil. The day Mei and Qin actually get along is when Google and Facebook will be available to all of China.

I shook my head and finished getting dressed. I stood before the mirror before it came to me. Crap, I'm doing it again. One year without my father and I'm wearing a pink cheongsam dress. Damn it, that old man still haunts me to this day. I can't get away from it. I will have to try and break the tradition of traditional clothes when I come home. I have been trying. Oh, have I been trying! But, it just happened like this. I can hear that man laughing at me. I will break away from you yet. Mark my words!

I found Szu waiting at the door for me. I blinked up and down at her miniskirt and tank top. She looked at my clothes likewise.

"You're wearing that out?" we asked each other. I blinked at her before frowning.

"Shut it!" I snapped. Szu put up her hands at me.

"Fine, fine," she said. Then, she headed out the door.

"Hey Szu," I spoke up. She glanced over her shoulder at me.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Aren't the boys going with us?" I asked. "I haven't seen them getting ready for dinner at all." Szu did her best to hold back a chuckle. I blinked at her.

"What?" I asked. She grabbed onto my hand and pulled me out the door.

"I got her!" she yelled at the ladies in a van. "Let's go!"

"Okay," Lili replied. Szu ushered me inside and got in. Before I knew it, I felt a blindfold come over my eyes.

"Hey!" I shouted. "What the hell?!"

"Sorry!" Mei said behind me. "We can't let you see yet."

"Why?" I asked.

"It's a surprise," Tina said to my left.

"What?!" I asked.

"Drive!" Szu yelled.

"Yes ma'am!" Bik called. The thing I knew, we were driving off. In twenty-five minutes, the blindfold came off.

"We're here!" Bik yelled. I looked out of the window and looked around. Bright pink lights were the first thing that I noticed. A girl with pink cat ears waited at the door. Gold characters flashed on and off in the sign. I blinked at the whole display.

"Uh…" I said. "What is it?" The mother giggled at that question. Bik shut off the van and turned to me.

"Happy Birthday, Ju," she said. "Welcome to Hot Lips." I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Is this a club?" I asked.

"Kind of," Cai said. I narrowed my eyes at the wives of my advisors.

"Am I going to regret this?" I asked.

"No," they all said. Szu grabbed me by the wrist and dragged me out. I tried to pull away.

"Okay, okay," I said. "I'll go in." The rest of the ladies followed behind. Okay, I had not expected to look at what was inside. Give me a moment here.

Okay.

Downstairs is a restaurant while upstairs is a nightclub. Pink washed over everything. I mean, everything. This place could put Barbie to shame. All of the waitress in the restaurant part had car ears and short pink dresses. The showering glitter didn't really help out with this place either. I blinked a good few times. _Am I high?_

"How did you guys find this?" I asked. Mei turned to me, grinning.

"I found it just looking around online," she said. I just stared at her. _O… kay…_ A pink kitty girl waitress walked up to us.

"Welcome!" she cheered. "How many in your party tonight?"

"Eleven," Bik replied. She leaned in close to the waitress and whispered something to her. I had a good guess that she was telling her that it was my birthday today. The waitress pulled back with a grin on her face. She clapped her hands together.

"Right this way!" the pink kitty girl said. Then, she walked over to look for a pink and glittered table for us to sit at. I put on a brave face and followed along with my crowd. _Come on guys, you must be plotting something for me. Right? Right?_

We ended up going upstairs to the club. A whiplash of shock came over my face. I felt like I had stepped back into time in a lavish palace. The bright red walls drew me into the elegant charm. No kitty girls up here. They all looked proper in their cheongsam and robes. Softer Zen music made my head hurt less than the pounding music downstairs. One of the "courtesans" walked over to us.

"Welcome," she greeted us. "Come and sit with us." She ushered us over to the low black tables. I smiled as settled into a familiar setting. Mei turned to me, grinning.

"Better?" she asked. I gave her a quick nod.

"Did you really think we would have the party downstairs?" she asked. "We wouldn't do that to you." Another "courtesan" walked over to us.

"Welcome to Hot Lips," she said. "I'll be your server tonight. What can I get you to drink?"

"Hot tea," I said. Szu, Tina, Qun, and Mei ordered soda while the mothers also ordered hot tea. The waitress wrote down our orders.

"Okay," she said. "I will be back with your order." The "courtesan" turned and walked away. The ladies disappeared into conversation as they waited. I let my eyes wonder around the room. There weren't many people up here tonight. Just a couple being lovey-dovey and two businessmen talking about a new business deal. (That reminds me, I have another deal coming up in two weeks. Bah! It's my birthday; it should be fun today!)

But then, I paused.

Wang Yao sat across the room with that business man, talking. My heart jumped in my charm. _Oh my… Holy… What the?!_ My memories went back to last year. I couldn't get that kiss out of my head if I tried. I had acted out of line out of my own stupid fears. Ever since then, I couldn't look him in the eye. I even tried not to be left alone in the room with him. I probably thought from time to time he didn't have any high thoughts about what I did. I couldn't explain myself out of that one if I tried. _What if he looks up notices me?_ Well, he will if I kept staring at him.

Then, that's when it happened.

I noticed my business partner staring back at me. Wang Yao stared right at me. _Maybe it's not at me._ Maybe it's in my direction. Please let it be in my direction. Please let it be in my direction. Please let it just be in my direction.

Then, Yao turned back to the man he was meeting. For some reason, I couldn't relax. In fact, my heart doubled. I tried to take in slower breaths.

"Ju? Ju?" someone asked beside me. I whipped around next to me with such a shock. Mei looked at me with concerned eyes.

"You alright?" she asked. I didn't respond at first. I slowly nodded at her.

"Yeah, yeah," I lied. "Excuse me." I stood up and walked into the open key hole-shaped doorway to find a bathroom. After a few step in the hall, I paused to take in deep breaths. What was that just now? I have been working hard to not make this awkward between him and me. I shut my eyes and shook my head. _No! I will not screw this up!_ I vowed to keep things professional between Yao and I. I already messed up when I kissed him that night last summer. I will never screw this up further. I can do this. Just walk back in there and take it like a real woman! _Go on, you can do it! You are a full-on clan leader now! Just suck it up and go!_

I paused when a heavy hand placed itself on my small shoulder. I glanced behind me. My heart doubled again in the pounding. Yao glanced at me with a serious look in his eyes.

"I thought it was you here," he said. I fought to stay strong in front of him.

"Yes," I said. "Today is my birthday. I'm eighteen today."

"Oh, happy birthday."

"Thank you."

I didn't move. My breathing and heart rate began to slow down bit by bit. This could turn out really well. Just excuse myself and get back to the table.

Then, he dropped the painful question.

"Why have you been avoiding me?" he asked. My spine froze. I knew this would happen. I might as well tell the truth. I dropped my shoulders.

"Do you remember that night we were checking out that building to set up our work?" I asked.

"Yeah," Yao said. "What about it?"

"So you remember that kiss, right?"

"Of course."

My lips trembled for a long moment. I had to keep going. _I won't back down. I won't back down!_ I turned around to him. "I saw something that freaked me out outside the cab and I wasn't thinking… and… I'm sorry." I bowed my head at him. Yao raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is that all?" he asked.

"Yes!" I blurted out. "It was stupid and it won't happen again!" Then, he asked me an odd question that caused it all to unravel again.

"You sure about that?" he asked. I stared at him with big eyes.

"Huh?" I asked. He looked me straight in the eye.

"Are you sure that you won't act inappropriately as you claim again?" that beautiful man asked. I just broke down from there. The thing I knew was my lips were pressed against his in another kiss. I felt myself hungry in the moment and didn't know how to stop. Each kiss kept following behind. He pinned me up against the wall and kissed me back. In my mind, I kept hoping this was all a surreal dream. I didn't know if I wanted to be woken up or not. He held my wrists against the darkened red wall behind me. I closed my eyes and felt myself sinking deeper into each heated, passionate kiss. I just let my body go limp like wet noodles under his. I could feel my heart racing in my chest again.

Yao forced his tongue into my mouth. Little shocks jumped up my spine. I shouldn't be doing this. _We_ shouldn't be doing this! But why can't I stop him? Why couldn't I push him off and say no? It was all easy. I could just push him off, apologize, and hurry back to my table. In, out, no questions. My friends were probably worried about me by now. Yet, I can't pull away. It just keeps getting more and more intense. I even felt my panties starting to get wet as Yao's tongue probed my mouth even further.

_Love me! Love me! Love me! Yes, love me! Please love me!_

But suddenly, Yao pulled away. I opened my eyes, panting. A confused look filled them seconds later.

"W-W-Why did you stop?" I asked. He gave me a small smile.

"We have to get back," Yao said in low voice. "Our parties are waiting for us." By the time that sank into my head, he was gone. I looked in the direction where he had gone. _Oh crap. I screwed up again._ Too late to complain about it. I straightened myself up and headed back into the club area. The girls looked all up at me.

"You okay?" Tina asked. I smiled and nodded at her.

"Yeah," I said. I came back to my seat just in time for our drinks to be served. The rest of the party went on without any other problems. However, my mind wouldn't let go of what happened just moments before. I couldn't help but to get the feeling I screwed up somehow. I have broken some unspoken taboo between us. I don't even think that it can even be repaired so easily this time. If this kept up, the damage might end up being too great for us both. I don't' know how it got missed up. I tried to avoid him, but he found me instead. This was bad, really bad. This should not have happened. This _really_ should not have happened in the first place. If I wasn't careful, something like that could happen again and ruin me. But… Why do I want to kiss him again like that so badly?

From there, Yao pushed me further into that confusing place that I vowed to myself that I would not cross.


	2. Cherry

Match Two: Cherry:

Alfred hadn't seen Florence or Lydia since last summer. He didn't know anyone else close to them to ask how they were doing. Alfred hadn't been by the hospital since Kiku left last year. The American man found himself too lazy to write them a letter. Over the months, Alfred came to notice that life without his girls had become rather boring. He even invited them out to his Christmas party, but they didn't show up. Other than that, he had been too busy to see about them.

Today that was going to change. Alfred walked over to the house that the girls lived in. He knocked on the door. A look of disappointment flooded his face when there was no answer.

_Hm, no answer_ , he thought. It donned on him that he didn't even get their phone numbers. They probably were at the hospital at the moment, but he just couldn't go there and look for them. That would possibly make him look too desperate. Best to wait until they came back. Alfred sat on the wicker chair on the front porch and waited. In the minutes increasing minutes, Alfred slowly began to nod off. He fought to keep his eyes open, but in the end sleep defeated him.

He dreamt that he saw a cherry tree hopping towards him. The petals of the pink blossoms left a small trail behind it as it moved closer with its roots dangling below it. A loud beeping noise came from the tree as it hopped.

Meep! Meep! Meep! Meep! Meep! Meep!

The beeping changed into an actual human voice.

"Alfred!" "Alfred!" "Alfred!"

The American man awoke to see Florence and Lydia staring at him. He blinked and straightened up his glasses.

"Girls?" he asked. "When do you get back?"

"Just a few minutes ago," Florence answered. "Have you been out here waiting for us this whole time?"

"I guess I have, dude," he said. "What time is it?"

"About noon," Lydia replied.

"Oh crap!" Alfred said aloud. His stomach began to growl.

"Oh," Florence said. "I suppose that you are staying for lunch with us, are you not?" Alfred perked up at those words. Again, he knew that there was going to be no meat, yet she could make it bearable for him to eat. He found it much easier to eat veggie-only meals when he was with these girls.

"Can I?" he asked like a hyper child. Florence giggled.

"Of course," he said. Alfred grabbed her by the hands.

Sweet! Thanks!" he cheered. Lydia stood by, watching them. She still couldn't understand the developing relationship between this man and her sister. Even after she told him that Florence was tree spirit, he still tried to hang around with them. On top of all of that, he still didn't know his own motive for pursing them both. Despite slowly warming up to him, Lydia still had her doubts on him.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Alfred spoke up, "I brought you a gift. Hang on." He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small jar. Florence took it from his hand and looked at the yellowish fluid inside.

"Thank you, Alfred," she said. "What is it?"

"Sunflower oil," he said. "I picked it up this morning from this health store. Figure it could help you in some way or another."

"Thank you," she said again. Alfred's face perked up.

"Dude! I'm so glad you like it!" he said. The tree woman only smiled back at him. Lydia lowered her shoulder and tried to smile. _Well, at least he tries to make her happy_ , he thought. Alfred straightened up his glasses.

"Say, Florence," he spoke up.

"Yes, Alfred?" she asked. He shuffled his feet as he tried to look rather cute.

"If you don't mind, could I have your phone number? You know, to keep in touch with you and stuff," he said. Florence's warmth reflected in her eyes and smile.

"Of course," she said, opening the relationship a little bit further.


	3. Akaname

Match Three: Akaname:

Kiku spent a year in therapy for all of the nightmares he had been having as of late. So far, no change had been apparent. Well, that was so until today's session. The therapist pulled out his pen.

"Are you still having the same dreams, Honda-san?" Suzuki-san asked him. Kiku shook his head. The therapist paused and glanced up at him.

"No?" he asked, "How exactly do you mean? Describe it to me."

"I don't think I know how…"

Kiku paced himself on the couch. "Okay… I keep seeing this blackened wasteland desert."

The therapist took down notes. "Go on."

"This fog is always blowing everywhere. I can't really see where I'm going. The sky looked just as dark as the fog on the ground. I could barely even see the sun it in. The ground feels rocky and really sharp. I couldn't feel it cut into my feet with every step."

"Have you seen this place before?"

"No!"

The therapist held up his hand. "Shhh, it's okay. You're safe here. Just continue."

Kiku took a long breath before speaking. "Alright. No matter went direction I walk, it all looks the same. I lose track of time as I kept walking. Hours later, I came into a ruined city."

"Describe the city for me."

"The building looked damaged and abandoned. The road is just as worse as the ground outside of the city. The signs look ripped up and broken. I even pass by a red 'LO' half-buried in the blackened sand."

"Now, the "LO" sign, is it the 'LOVE' sign here in Tokyo?"

"I don't know."

The therapist took more notes. "I see. Go on."

Kiku tightly shut his eyes. "As I keep walking, I hear terrible moans of agony. Before I know it, I am surrounded by these zombie-like creatures."

Suzuki-san froze and looked up. "Zombie-like creatures?"

Kiku nodded as he opened his eyes. "At least that what's I think they are."

"Well, what do they look like?"

Kiku narrowed his eyes and tried to remember the dream exactly. "Really skinny, pale, scars on their back, covered in sores, and…"

"Take your time if you have."

"They all kept screaming out in pain."

Suzuki-san glanced up at him through his silver-framed glasses. "What for?"

"They all seemed to be suffering from some really bad headache in unison."

"How bad are we talking?"

Kiku pressed his lips together. "Like their heads were about to split open. Pretty soon, the sound is so bad that I cover my ears and try to run away. But after a few hours, I… I…"

The therapist stopped writing and glanced up at him. "You?"

The poor man had to force himself to say the part of the reoccurring dream. "I see the tower from the ground. Then, I hear that woman's voice again."

"Don't let the devil get me?"

"Yes!"

Outside, Sena listened to the whole session as she waited for her husband out in the hall. When Kiku first started therapy last year to help him through this mess, she was highly skeptical about everything. However once she heard his dream being described in full detail, Sena didn't know what to believe anymore. She clenched her fist to her chest.

Nothing good will come out this, Sena thought with a huge knot forming in her stomach.


	4. Final Year, Silence, and Phone Call

Match Four: Final Year, Silence, and Phone Call:

-Ju-

It's my final year of high school. Not much has changed as far as I know. Tina and Qun are still close to me. My roommate's still a party animal. Li-ya's even just as annoying as ever. I shook my head to myself. I don't even care about that last part, really. Yet, somehow it just needed to be thrown out there in some way. Wow, I just wrap my around the fact that I'm going to a high graduate in two months from now. I haven't gotten to pick out which college that I want yet. I've been too busy with the clan. In fact, I have another meeting with my investors and Yao this upcoming weekend.

I paused at that last part of my thought.

Yao… It's since awkward to be around him. I can't that moment we made out in the restaurant out of my head. I still feel every moment of it. I had no idea that Yao had such strong hands. I certainly figured that out when he pinned me against the wall and wouldn't stop kissing me. I don't know what scares me more—something more will develop from this if we keep this up or that I am enjoying it all too well.

I shut my eyes and tried to think of something else. I realized that it is so quiet in my room. It's almost too quiet to be frank. I opened my eyes and did a glance around. My roommate's off with her boyfriend again tonight. That's really not a surprise anymore. Just as long as it's not disruptive to my studies, I'm okay with it. The question is, what am I going to do about this silence? I already finished my homework just hours earlier. I don't have any paperwork to do at this time. I'm too lazy to get and turn on my laptop to do anything. My mind wandered back to my clan. What are they up to now, I couldn't help but wonder.

As if on cue, my cell phone rang. I have to admit, I sat up with such a jump before my brain figured out the source of the music. _Calm down, stupid! It's just your phone; pick it up and answer it!_ I reached over and picked up my phone.

"Hi, Bik," I said, "How are you?"

"How did you know it was me? How are you?"

I leaned against the wall. "I keep telling you, I just know when it's you." I chuckled to myself. "It's funny, I was just thinking about you guys. How is everyone?"

"Good as usual, it's been really quiet lately."

A puzzled look came over my face. "Quiet, how?"

"There's not much to do around here. The kids are busy with school and our husbands are working. I just got my shift at the clinic."

"That all?" I asked.

"Yes, why do you ask?" Bik answered. I waved it away.

"It's nothing," I said. I bit my lower lip after saying that, however. "Though, I do have a bit of a question."

"What?" Bik asked. I swallowed hard before I could let the question sip out of my lips.

"How do I get rid of unwanted sexual urges?" I blurted out with my eyes closed. The nurse didn't speak at first. I couldn't help but to get the feeling I had upset her in some way. Yet, I didn't know where else to turn at this point. I just had to suck it up and come out with it. A pause came over the phone and my stomach dropped.

"Hello?" I asked. "Bik?" My ears caught laughter so loud that I had to hold my phone away, wincing.

"Bik?" I asked when I put the phone back to my ear. It took her about five minutes to calm down and talk to me again.

"Is that all, dear?" she asked.

"Yes…" I mumbled sheepishly by this point. The nurse tried not laugh at me again on the phone. I frowned as I wished that I hadn't brought up this stupid topic in the first place.

"Oh dear me," she said, "It's about time for that talk, isn't it?"

"Talk?" I asked.

"Did you finish your homework?" Bik asked.

"Yes, why?" I asked. I narrowed my eyes at everything that she was asking me.

"Are you alone right now?" my mother figure followed-up.

"Okay, what is this for?" I asked.

"Are you alone right now?" Bik asked me again, "I don't want it to be awkward if your roommate happened to be eavesdropping on this."

"Oh…" I murmured. It made sense, I suppose; I still didn't get where she was going to take this. "Yes then," I replied, "I am alone right now."

"Good," the good nurse replied, "It's a good thing your father isn't alive to hear this. Alright, take some long breaths and lose closely. This will be a bit mature for you to handle at first, but you are a grown woman now and you need to know this."

"Right," I said trying to show that I wouldn't potentially like where this was headed.

"Are you ready to here this?" Bik asked after she took a moment on the other line to gather herself up to talk.

"I guess," I mumbled.

"You can't guess for this!" she practically shouted at me, "It's either yes or no. Now which one is it, Ju?"

"Okay, okay!" I said on the edge of a panic from the sudden change in tone, "I'm ready. Please don't yell at me."

"I apologize, my lady," she said. I sighed when I heard her say those two words.

"Bik, please," I reminded her, "You don't have to call me that; you're practically a mother to me."

"Oh, right, right," she replied, "I apologize."

"Don't," I told her, "Just tell me how to get rid of these sexual urges I do not want."

"Alright," Bik said back, "Just one more thing."

"What?" I asked.

"Are you sitting down right now?" the nurse asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"That's really good to answer," my mother-figure told me, "Because I will probably take you all night to talk about this with you."

`"It's fine with me," I said, "I don't really have much to do anyway."


	5. Visions

Match Five: Visions:

The wasteland began to show its cracks early on within the countries. One by one, they all saw the tower in their dreams. They all started hazy at first. The dreams mirrored Japan's right down to the finest detail. Such disturbing imagery drove them into awkward silence without looking each other in the eye.

"How can something feel so real?" Germany asked himself.

None of them even wanted to describe what was going on. The chills constantly came and went on their bodies. The images thrashed around in their minds.

"Are you still having these dreams?" the therapist asked.

"Yes," Japan answered, "I don't know how to get them to stop." The therapist tried to calm him down.

"Shhh, sir, it will be okay," he told him during every session. That was only far from the truth. Something is outside scratching at the gates. None of the countries wanted to talk about and tried to focus on their daily lives. But how long before even _that_ would become harder to do?

China would be seen as the one who pushes things forward by one little lapse in judgment with his year-old partnership with Liao Ju one night alone their building. From there, the gates unfolded and the Wasteland would wash over them all without anyone noticing a thing.

It all started with a kiss.


	6. Gifts, Lust, and Uncertainty

Match Six: Gifts, Lust, and Uncertainty:

-Ju-

I'm going to be working alone with Wang Yao tonight. We have to wrap some party favor gifts for a wedding that our businesses are sponsoring. Yao is providing the food and my clan is funding it. Up until sundown, I have tried my best to prepare myself not to lose control again. I still can't get our last encounter of my hand. The scary thing is that I want more of it. I couldn't help but to wonder what would happen if he hadn't stopped me. Yet, I know that I can't go any further. I don't want to lose a big piece of myself in a way. With that being said, I must be really careful this evening.

I met Yao at the front of our building. I paid the cab driver and gathered myself up to execute tonight's job. Yao gave me a small wave.

"Good evening, Liao-furen," he said.

"Good evening," I replied back with a bow. Yao put up his hand at me.

"Please," he said, "You don't have to do that. We are equal partners; we don't have to be so formal." I smiled as I kept my composure.

"Of course," I said in one breath, "Shall we get started?" Yao turned to face the glass doors.

"I already have the gifts and supplies on the fifth floor," he told me before going inside. I nodded as the glass doors slid closed.

"Okay then…" I mumbled. I put up my shield again and followed after him. First the first few moments, everything felt normal. I tried my best not to make eye contact. Instead, I focused my eyes on his chin, mouth, and nose.

"So, what exactly do we have to do tonight?" I asked.

"We are wrapping up the party favors for the wedding," Yao explained to me. I nodded as I kept my eyes on his moving mouth.

"Right," I said.

"Watch how I do it," he told me. Then, he told a seat beside me, picked up three little charms, a pack of rice crackers, and little beads, and put them in the little purple bags. I watched his hands as stuffed the white tissue paper inside and rolled up the bag.

"You understand now?" he asked.

"Yes!" I said quickly. I took a seat beside of and got to work. We sat in silence working as the sun disappeared outside. I really wish that I brought some music with me tonight. The silence leads my mind into places that it shouldn't be. A perfect example of this is my mind going back to sexual thoughts about my business partner. I shook my head to block out such thoughts, but they are just getting more vivid and stronger. My eyes glanced over at him. Yao kept working away with those gift bags. Maybe I should say something…

"Are you okay?" I heard him asking. I looked up at him puzzled.

"Hm?" I asked. Yao set aside another bag his pile.

"You haven't said a single thing or looked up at me this whole time," he said without looking at me, "Is something wrong?" I tried to think of the right answer to throw back at him. I bit on my lower lip. The silence not only makes my mind wander off to places that it shouldn't; I end up saying things that I usually wouldn't. I looked down at my hands.

"I'm afraid," I mumbled.

"Afraid?" he asked, "Afraid of what?" I swallowed as I couldn't make myself stop talking.

"That I will lose control," I admitted.

"Lose control?" he repeated. I nodded my pile of gifts. Then, my partner went straight for the jugular.

"Tell me, Ju," Yao said, "Do you find me attractive?" I sat up with a red face.

"WHA—WHAT?!" I yelped.

"It shows on your face," he said, "You keep trying to avoid me in private and you're blushing." I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

"Uh… well…" I said.

"Do you?" he asked.

"What will happen if I say yes?" I asked. He didn't answer me there for a moment. My mind began to fear the worst that could happen.

"Look up at me," I heard him say.

"I can't…" I mumbled.

"No, it'll be fine," Yao told me. I didn't move at first. Feeling trapped, I finally turned my head. It didn't take like for our eyes to meet. My heart flipped in my chest. The impulses in my brain took over my mind as I rushed forward and kissed him. Yao grabbed onto my arms and pushed me down on the table. I pushed aside the gifts as our kisses sped up. The heat spread between as he grabbed onto my pink tank top. It didn't take me long to end up lying naked on my back wide open, looking up at him. Yao, already shirtless, untied his pants and slid them off. I didn't speak as he finished stripping down. He grabbed onto my shoulders and entered me. I winced and breathed in hard. Yao gave me a rather puzzled look on his face.

"Ju," he said in low voice, "Is this your first time?" I nodded as I tried to endure the pain.

"Oh, I had no idea," he said, "Should I stop?"

"No!" I whimpered to my partner, "You must keep going! Please!" He didn't respond, instead he got right to work with pounding inside of me. I have to admit, it still did hurt me at first. I found myself rather surprised on how fast I gave myself over to the pleasure. I shut my eyes and gave into deep moaners.

"Oh, harder! Harder!" I cried to him as my nails dug into his back. My partner responded to all of my commands with tender force. I lost count of how many times we did it that night, but along with the pleasure came unease that I didn't notice at the time. If had, our partnership wouldn't have evolved in the steamy way that it would and I would still have myself.

However in that moment, I indulged myself in more sex with my partner and new soon-to-be lover.


	7. Late-Night Run, Breakfast, and Lovers

Match Seven: Late-Night Run, Breakfast, and Lovers:

-Ju-

After the heat storm died down, I looked up at the clock on the wall. _Oh shit!_ , I thought. I shook Yao on the shoulder.

"Yao!" I whispered, "Get up! Get up!" He turned his head and slowly opened his eyes.

"What?" he asked, "What's the matter?"

"Look at what time it is," I whispered. Yao squinted his eyes as he looked at the clock.

"It's about midnight already?" he asked.

"Yes!" I said aloud. My business partner put up his hand as he shushed me.

"Okay, okay," he said, "We'll finish up the gifts and call it a night. Fine with you?" That wasn't the real problem here. I forced myself to smile and nod at him.

"Sure," I said, "I just need to make a call real quick."

"Alright," Yao replied. I slid off the table, got dressed, walked into the hall. Once I was out of earshot, I pulled out my cell phone and dialed the one number I needed in times like these. I passed around as the other line rang.

"Come on," I mumbled, "Pick up! Please pick up!"

"Hello?" a drowsy voice asked on the other line. My heart flipped in relief.

"Tina?" I asked.

"Ju?" my good old pal asked in a puzzle voice, "It's almost midnight, what's the matter?"

"I need you to make a run for me," I said.

"What?" Tina asked. I placed my hand over the mouthpiece.

"I need you to make a personal run for me," I repeated in a whisper. Tina paused for a long moment on the other line.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Personal as in…" my American friend said, trying to understand. I sighed as I didn't want to say this out loud.

"Sexual," I whispered through clenched teeth. I heard her fall out of bed on the other line.

"Ju!" she exclaimed, "You didn't!"

"Yes," I whispered, "Now can you please help me out?"

"Fine, fine," she said, "I'll be happy to help. I'll get it to you at school." I breathed out in a sigh.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"Anything else?" Tina asked. I shook my head.

"No," I replied, "Nothing at all."

"Good night," she cooed. As she hung up, something told me that I wouldn't hear the end of it at school. At least, I'll get the pills that I need. I took a moment to gather myself up and went back into the office.

Yao and I finished up the gifts at about one in the morning. My partner yawned at stretched.

"I'm beat," he said. Yao turned to see me trying to fight sleep. He shook me on the arm.

"You still awake?" he asked. I looked up at him with tired eyes. I gave him a small nod.

"Yes," I said half-mumbling. Yao leaned in and smiled at me.

"Well, let's get going," he said. I lifted my head and gave him a puzzled look.

"Huh?" I asked.

"Breakfast," he said. It took me a while to understand what he was talking about.

"Oh!" I said, "Sure, sure." Yao patted me on the head.

"I know just the place," he said. We took the cab back into the city. I stared out the window at the passing city with just one question I couldn't hold back anymore.

"Yao," I spoke, "What exactly are we?" He turned his head to me.

"Excuse me?" he asked. I turned to face him.

"You know, we…" I said in a low voice. He gave me a slight shrug.

"So?" he asked.

"We can't keep things the same now," I said. Yao looked at me with changing the curious expression on his face.

"So, what do you suggest?" he asked. I lost all words from there. What _did_ I want after all of this? I didn't really expect things to turn out like this and I didn't know how exactly to fix it now. I looked down at my hands.

"Uh well…" I mumbled. Yao gently put his hand over me. I looked up at him with big eyes.

"We'll talk over breakfast," he said in a low voice. Despite it doing little smoother over the problem, I managed to smile and nod.

"Right," I said as I sat back. Yao did likewise and enjoyed the silent ride to the noodle bar.


	8. Sycamore

Match Eight: Sycamore:

Alfred is going to learn how to cook today. Florence already waited for him in the kitchen.

"Ready to begin?" she asked. The American man nodded at her, knowing there was no meat included in today's menu. He gotten used to this with her, partly because he pigs out on burgers to make up for the lunches at her house. He could understand Florence going the healthy route, but Lydia amazed him on how she was able to keep up with her older sister.

"Hey Florence," Alfred spoke up as she rinsed the vegetables in the sink.

"Yes?" she asked.

"What exactly is Lydia?" he asked next to her. Florence rinsed off a cabbage before sitting it aside.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Is she… like you?" the American man asked.

"A vegetarian?" the tree spirit suggested.

"No," Alfred said, "Is she a tree spirit?" Florence finished rinsing the carrots and set them with the cabbage.

"No, she's a human girl," she replied. Alfred almost squeezed a tomato when he heard that revelation.

"Careful!" Florence cried, "You'll bruise it!" Alfred looked down at the tomato in his fist.

"Oh, sorry about that," he said.

"Give it here," she told him. The woman took the tomato out of his hand, rinsed it off, and set it aside.

"So, Lydia's not really your sister?" Alfred asked.

"She's more like a guardian, so to speak," Florence replied. He looked at her hands as she started rinsing the potatoes.

"Where is her family?" he asked.

"I don't really remember what happened to her mother," the woman replied when she finished up the remaining vegetables, "She was dead before I met her."

"So her father originally watched over you?" Alfred asked.

"That is correct," Florence replied, "Come over here. I'll show you how to cut up the vegetables for the stew."

"Okay," Alfred said. The pair moved to the counter. Florence picked up the sharpest knife out of the block. Her male friend couldn't help but notice her hands.

"You've been using that sunflower oil I gave you?" he asked.

"Why yes," she said, "It really clears up my skin and gives me more energy. It even gives me more of an appetite." Alfred gave her a little smile.

"I'm so happy to hear that," he said.

"Come and look how I'm cutting the carrots," she told him. The woman took the knife and began cutting them gentle and firmly in a diagonal. "The trick is to keep them as small as possible." Alfred nodded as he looked at her tiny hand wrapped around the big knife.

"Get it now?" she asked. It took Alfred a little while to return back to earth at her question.

"Yeah," he replied. The American man picked up a knife and helped her cut up the carrots as well.

"We'll roast the potatoes last as a side dish," Florence told him as she moved onto the next carrot on the chopping board.

"Sounds good to me," Alfred said as he finished up with his own carrot.


	9. Naked, Sex Ed, and Connie Chatterley

****

Match Nine: Naked, Sex Ed, and Connie Chatterley:

-Ju-

On Saturday back at my house, I took off all my clothes and looked at myself in front of a full-length mirror. I haven't done this since I was twelve years old. Back then, I was skinny, flat-chested, and looked younger than my actual age. Today at age eighteen, I have some curves to my body now. My breasts have grown to about a full C-cup, almost a D. I still look like I'm in junior high. Plus, I look tanned today. I took down my ponytails and looked at myself that way. A smile twitched on my face. I look really like this. Maybe I should wear my hair down like this more often. It definitely makes me look two years older, almost close to my actual age even. I probably could…

Hang on. When have I ever had this? I noticed a small, dark brown mole just below my right breast. It didn't look serious, but have I always had that there? I think I need to check that out. On that thought, my phone began to ring in my shoulder bag. The sound made me jump before I came to my senses. I threw on an oversized t-shirt and reached inside the front pocket of my school bag.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Oh, Ju!" I heard Bik on the other line, "Just the girl I wanted to talk to."

"I wanted to talk to you as well," I said, "And why?"

"A package of papers that was meant for you got sent to my house by mistake," she replied.

"Okay, thanks for letting me know," I said, "I'll be right over. I have something to ask you anyway."

"Alright," the nurse told me.

"See you there," I said. I hung up and changed clothes. In one minute, I was at the Chang house. Bik, Hen-to, Biao, and Chih live three houses down from me. Our houses are in a circular villa like a mini-village in a sense. I walked up and knocked on the door.

"Hello there, Ju," Bik greeted me, "Come on in." I followed her into the house.

"So, what can I do for you?" she asked.

"I need you to check something for me," I said. I lifted up my shirt and pointed to that mole under my right breast. "Is it serious?" I asked. Bik gave me a warm smile.

"It's fine," she said coolly, "It's just a harmless little mole. Your mother had the same thing in the same spot."

"She did?" I asked. The nurse giggled at me when I asked her that.

"Your father called it her beauty mark," she said.

"Well, that's too much information for me," I said as I lowered my shirt. Another thought crossed my mind. "Bik," I spoke up.

"Yes, dear?" she asked.

"How do you know when it's a good idea to sleep with a man?" I asked outright. The nurse looked up at me with big eyes.

"What?" she asked. I slowly sat down at the kitchen table. The nurse's face became paler than snow.

"Ju, what did you do?" she asked in a stern voice. I buried my head in my hands.

"I made quite a mistake three nights ago," I said in a muzzled voice.

"What did you do, Ju?" Bik asked. I lifted my head in distress.

"I slept with Yao that night," I admitted. Her jaw all but dropped.

"Ju, you didn't!" she said. I pressed my lips together as I nodded. The nurse leaned in closer to my face.

"Did he use protection?" she whispered. I shook my head.

"Ju!" Bik said with a gasp, "I taught you better than that!"

"I had Tina get some emergency contraceptive," I admitted. The nurse breathed out in relief.

"Thank goodness," she said, "But you just can't be sleeping around under prepared like that. What if he had some disease that you couldn't cure. You know AIDS and HIV is a serious problem in this country. Don't even get me started on babies. This is your last year of high school. I know that you are an adult now, but please for my sanity, be more careful about this if there ever is a next time!"

"Yes, Bik," I said with a nod. Somehow, her lecture made me feel much better. To be honest, I don't know why I told her all of that. Maybe I just wanted some to lecture me on what I did. In a way leading up to this point, I felt like Connie Chatterley after she got pregnant by Oliver Mellors trying to work out the divorce with Clifford in _Lady Chatterley's Lover_. I could even see myself as Connie and Yao being Oliver after that night. The question now would be how many more times would something like that night occur before I completely lost myself. I shuddered to think about the moment when and what would happen. Would I be able to pick up the pieces after that happened? What would remain and what would be lost to be forever?

"Miss, are you feeling okay?" I heard outside of my head.

"Yes!" I said as I lifted my head. Bik put a hand on my forehead, but I pushed it away.

"Seriously, I'm fine," I insisted, "Where are the papers that you said that got mailed here?"

"Oh, right," she said, "I have them right here. Hang on." She disappeared down the hallway and came from with a brown envelope in the hand. I took them as I stared at her.

"Thank you," I said. I bowed and walked out the door. I wondered if I was Connie and Yao was Oliver, then who was Clifford in this case. I dreaded to even know what the answer was. It would probably leave me was a bad taste in my mouth if I dug too deeply into it.


	10. Gates of Hell

Match Ten: Gates of Hell:

The gates of the Wasteland have been ripped open. Rather, they were jimmied open and now the distress is creeping in. The Wasteland is seeking out for fresh life to latch onto. The countries around the world cannot see this, of course. This does not stop them from sensing that something is wrong. Kiku was the first to feel its effects.

Even his therapist is starting to see how the wasteland is taking hold of him. Many times the doctor would awake in the middle of the night panting. He could feel Kiku's dreams passing through him. The therapist tried not to sleep without medication anymore.

Kiku isn't the only one who notices the problems that are coming. Ivan's version of the Wasteland dreams has been getting much more vivid lately. Every night he awakes, he could still feel the effect of the tormented angels in the Fallen City. His back felt as if something had been ripped away from it with a wire saw. Ivan ended up checking his back in the mirror every morning.

While some are feeling the small effects of the Wasteland, others deny what is happening. Ludwig keeps telling himself that nothing is wrong. Despite the dreams that he sees night after night, he believes that they are nothing more than dreams. The effects are slowly snaking their way through his normal daily life. _There is nothing wrong_ , he keeps saying, _It's all in your head. Get a hold of yourself!_ His own words began to crumble in his mind as the Wasteland came and filled the cracks in the world.

Alfred hasn't caught onto what's happening yet. He's too busy getting closer to Florence. Lydia can feel it coming however. It worries her about her sister's budding relationship with the American man. He doesn't know his true intentions with her yet and that could lead to disaster. Because of this, Lydia has vowed to herself to stay close to the pair and watch them until the young man's intentions become clear. So far, things look pleasure and simple for all three of them. Lydia has no idea how long that will long.

Even so, there is still one question that no one has yet to ask: Who opened the gates to this brewing Hell coming their way? There hasn't been a big effort impact for people to even sit up and take action. Yet, the answer is staring them down in the face. The source comes from the unholy tempting union of two people and they continued to spread the flames of the Wasteland faster through their copulations. However, one wants to stop it, but doesn't know how to. As she gets closer to her new lover, the hungry power of the Wasteland's despair opens its gaping mouth to swallow the whole world in.


	11. Game

Match Eleven: Game:

This isn't a healthy game that they play. However, she does not know how to stop it before it gets out of hand. They will have a long night going over papers tonight. She knows they have crossed the line once before. Ju's determined not to do that again. Yet, attraction has a strange way of working itself through its victims.

Yao placed the documents on the table. "That wedding last week put us straight into the black." Ju nodded at him as she had her lips pressed together.

"Yes," she replied. Yao tilted his head with a perplexed look on his face.

"Am I making you uncomfortable somehow?" he asked. His partner jerked her head upwards with a blank stare.

"Hm?" she asked. The young clan leader's ponytails swung back and forth as she shook her head. "No, no!" she tried to lie. Yao rested his hands on hers and the game began again.

"If something is on your mind," the man calmly told her, "Talk to me." She tried not to look into his nurturing brown eyes. _You're trying to snare me again. I won't fall for it this time; I won't!_ His touch made her heart race faster than her brain.

"Could you please not touch me?" she asked in a small voice. Yao's mouth dropped into a little frown.

"I'm sorry?" he asked. Ju pulled back her hands and shuddered.

"What's the matter?" Yao asked. She rose to her feet and rushed out of the office.

"Ju?" he asked as the door swung closed. She held in the bathroom for close to ten minutes. Ju ran the water in the faucet to clear her head. She took in slow breaths to regain control. The poor soul isn't doing too well with this game. Ju wished that she had the advantage in this tango. Her main problem in this case was age; she's too young to fully master attention and box it away. Yao on the other hand has had thousands of years to possess control. That itself made this game all the more dangerous.

 _I don't think I can handle this_ , Ju thought as she shook her head. She dropped her head as she figured that the only way out of this was to tell the truth. No stalling with it; just come out and say it. Ju gave herself a minute before marching back out to the office. Yao looked up when he heard the door close. Ju held onto the door knob behind her.

"Have you calmed down now?" her partner asked. Ju lifted her head and tightened up her resolve.

"Listen, it's about the other night," she began in a steady tone. Yao raised an eyebrow at her.

"What about it?" he asked. Ju clutched onto the door knob tighter behind her.

"That…" she started to say as she struggled with her words. They sounded so much better in her head. However, she would feel much better coming out with it now than never.

"That was a mistake," Ju began again, "And it will never happen again; alright?" To her surprise, Yao gave her a small nod.

"Fair enough," he said, "I understand." A confused look came over his younger partner's face.

"You do?" she asked.

"Yes," Yao said, brushing it all off. Ju took a huge breath out.

"Okay then," she said, "Thanks." The young partner walked over to the desk and took her seat. Yao pulled out a planner and shoved it open before her.

"Panda Luck is ordering ten rolls of silk from and want it delivered to them by Monday," he told her. Ju read over the order for herself and nodded.

"Anything brand in particular that they want?" she asked.

"They only said they wanted the most expensive brand that you had in your storage building," Yao answered.

"I think I have just the thing that they crave," she said with a proud nod, "When do we get to meet with them?"

"Saturday morning," her partner said, "Is that okay with you?"

"That will work just fine," she said sitting back in her chair. They avoided this round of the game today, but next time does not look so promising for the Wasteland is hungry and wants to drain everything that these lovers have to afford.


	12. Dolls

Match Twelve: Dolls:

The therapist pulled out his notes.

"Are your dreams still the same, Honda-san?" he asked. Kiku sat stoic on the outside while nervous on the inside.

"Yes," he replied, "However…" The other man glanced up at him.

"However?" he asked. Kiku lifted his eyes at him.

"My wife put up dolls around the house and the dreams have stopped," he explained calmly.

"Dolls?" the therapist asked. The client nodded at him.

"Yeah," he said, "She read somewhere that certain can ward off evil spirits by holding them in their body."

"I see," the therapist replied.

He isn't the only one taking on this practice. Many of the other countries have started to put up dolls in their homes and places of work. On the surface, the dolls seem to be working. No more dreams and no more unease. Everyone just goes about their business and nothing else passes. Because of the results, the dolls started to multiply all over the world in various windows to keep out the wasteland.

Yet, something seems off about these little creepy dolls. Why were they working so well? It didn't take long for people to get curious about them. However, no one dared to touch them. For some reason unknown to them, it felt like someone was watching them every time they got close to the dolls. As a result, no one dared to touch or even stare at them for a long time. This didn't stop the curiosity, though. It wouldn't be long before taboos were broken and the need for an unholy quest to seek the truth would stir again. In fact, the wasteland waited the right moment to start up its hungry hunt for destruction.

On Saturday afternoon, Ju received a knock on her door.

"Coming!" she shouted as she hurried over to open. Yao looked inside with papers in his hands. His young business partner gave him an elegant smile.

"Yao," she said trying to keep down her excitement, "I didn't expect to see you here so early."

"My sister had to tend to a friend in the hospital this morning so she had to cancel her visit," he told her, "Plus your villa was nearby, so…"

"Is that so?" Ju asked sounding intrigued. She stepped aside for him. "Do come in," the younger woman said.

"Why thank you," Yao said with a bow. Ju closed the door behind him once he walked inside.


	13. Lunch, Doll, and Tempting Smile

Match Thirteen: Lunch, Doll, and Tempting Smile:

-Ju-

_I can do this. Nothing inappropriate will happen between us._

I turned around to see Yao sitting at the table, waiting. I put on my best proper smile.

"You caught me while I was finishing cooking," I said. Yao nodded at me.

"Was that bad?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Nah," I said, "It's okay." I picked up the wok from the stove and served him first. Yao picked up his chopsticks.

"This looks delicious," he said. Today's meal was beef with vegetables and spicy ginger fried rice. The man looked up at me with bright eyes.

"Tell me how you like it," I told him.

"Sure well," Yao said. He eagerly picked up his chopsticks and took the first bite. I waited with bated breath. Yao turned to me with a huge smile on his face as he chewed and swallowed the beef.

"You've done an excellent job with this!" he exclaimed. My heart did little flips in my chest.

"Really?" I asked, "You mean it?" Yao nodded as he took another bite. I served my own plate and took a seat across from him. I picked up my chopsticks a took a bite into the rice. My eyes instantly saw firecrackers.

"This is pretty good," I said.

"You're pretty good at cooking," Yao said in between bites.

"Bik taught me how," I said after I finished my bite. He paused with food on his chopsticks.

"Your clan nurse?" he asked.

"Yeah," I said, nodding, "She pretty much raised me after my mother died."

"You sound really fond of her," Yao said.

"I am," I replied. The rest of lunch went on smoothly with any temptation. Yao happened to look over at the stool near of the entrance of the hallway and shuddered.

"What's the matter?" I asked as I set my chopsticks on my plate. Yao turned his head looking rather grim.

"I don't like the way that doll stares at us," he whispered as if someone was listening in on us. I looked over his shoulder and saw the doll in question staring at us. I'm not sure when she started sitting there or why I kept her around. Come to think of it, she did creep me out as well. I rose to my feet from the table.

"You know?" I asked, "I'll fix that right now." I walked up and picked up the blanket from the couch. Yao watched as I covered up that doll with it. I took a step back and breathed out.

"There," I said, "Problem solved." Yao gave me a little smile. In that instant, my heart raced as my face reddened. I was breathing so heavily that I didn't hear Yao ask, "Ju? Is something wrong?" Before I knew, I raced over and kissed him on the lips hard. He didn't even bother to push me off at first. After about ten seconds, I pulled away looking so confused.

"Are you feeling okay?" he asked. I sank to my knees before me.

"Kiss me again," I whispered, "I can't stand it anymore. Please…"


	14. Gentleman's Gift

Match Fourteen: Gentleman's Gift:

-Fourteen Years Ago-

"I look forward to starting business with you, Wang," Khai said in his office on the day of his wife's funeral. Yao bowed his head at him.

"I am my honored myself," the other man said. His new business partner gave him a beaming smile.

"As a token of my good faith," he said, "I will give you my daughter as a present."

"What?" Yao asked with big eyes of surprise, "But she's only four years old!" The other man roared with laughter.

"No, no," he said, "Not now, but when she was old enough." Yao kind of loved hoping that all of it was a joke.

-Present Day-

Yao lifted Ju's head. His young business partner looked at him with big desperate eyes. It would be taking advantage of her, but she wants relief. Yao pressed his lips together.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked. Ju shook her eyes as she nodded.

"Yes," she said in hoarse voice. Yao looked down at her waiting lips. The invitation felt off, but yet it reminded him of what her father said to him all of those years ago. The older partner leaned and planted a little kiss on her lips. Little sparks leapt up in the girl's heart. Her arms ached to embrace him. The feeling went cold when pulled away from her. Ju opened her eyes to see Yao staring at her.

"Talk to me," he told her, "How do you really feel about me?" Ju struggled to find the appropriate answer to his question. All of the lies that she could've thought of didn't sound right in her head. She looked down at her hands.

"What will become of me if I tell you?" she asked.

"I'm sorry?" Yao asked her. She lifted her head and looked him straight in the eye.

"I think that I am attracted to you in a way that I shouldn't be," Ju admitted with unease in her voice. The older partner raised an eyebrow at her statement.

"Why do you believe such?" he asked.

"Please don't," she softly pleaded as if to herself.

"No, tell me," Yao nudged her, "Why do you think that you shouldn't be attract to me?" Ju felt her stomach turn.

"You're so much older than me," she admitted, "Plus, we work together. I'm still in high school and I don't have time for an intimate relationship." The girl tried in vain to stop herself, but her bleeding heart already took control over her thoughts and desires. She clenched her fist to her chest.

"It's such a mess," Ju said quietly, "It was just one stupid kiss. How could it spiral into this storm in my head?" Yao lifted her head for her to face him again.

"You mean this kiss?" he asked her. The man leaned in and gave his younger business partner another peck on the lips. Ju's own logic shut down from the rushing heat in her chest and between her legs. Yao pulled away and noticed the flushed cheeks Ju sported as she tried in vain to keep it together.

"Yes," she said in one breath. Ju leaned forward and connected her lips to his again. This time, Yao grabbed onto her smaller frame.

"Please take me," the girl said in a pant.

"I will, but only if you really want me to," Yao whispered in her ear before nibbling on it. She planted a ten-second kiss on his throat. He leapt up from his chair and pinned her against the wall. Ju grabbed onto his white shirt and unbuttoned the small buttons with quickness in her hands. The man closed his eyes and softly whimpered as her mouth trailed down his throat to his chest. In the back of her mind, Ju heard herself screaming to stop this.

_Stop. Please stop. Once you cross over, you can't go back._

The voice was silence when Yao rolled off her black and pink t-shirt. He grabbed her by the thighs and took her down the hall.

"Show me to your room," he whispered in her ear.

"Down the hall to your right," Ju said back before kissing him on the neck again.

"Yes ma'am," he said. Yao took his potential new lover down the hall nibbling on her collarbone. She reached and opened the door to her room. Her older partner glanced up to the light green walls as he carried the girl into the room. He dumped her onto the bed before sliding off his shirt. Ju tried to catch her breath as she looked him in the eye.

"Wait," she said, "Do you have protection?" Yao sank down over her body.

"Yes," he told her, "I didn't forget this time. Hang on." The man reached into his right jeans pocket and pulled out a freshly wrapped condom. He noticed her lips curved into a smile.

"What?" he asked innocently. Ju did her best to hold back a giggle.

"Do you always carry those around in your pocket?" she asked. Yao gave her a small shrug.

"Just today," he replied.

"Just today?" she asked. Yao planted a kiss on her throat.

"Something told me that this would come into use today," he said in her ear. He moved his lips to her own and took her back into his arms. She parted her lips just enough for his tongue to slide inside. In the next few hours, something would die even further within her, but pleasure in the spectacular now blocked out any notice of this as Yao trembled his mouth down to her perky breasts behind her pink cotton bra.


	15. Running

Match Fifteen: Running:

She can't keep up with him. Flowers keep popping up in her head. The veins in the petals closed around her mind like a suffocating halo. The roots clawed up the bleak sky as his hands unhooked her bra. Her eyes rolled towards the ceiling. She could've sworn that little pricks began to form as the pink cotton hit the floor. Ju closed her eyes and drew in a breath.

"Yao…"

His mouth sank down on the side of her neck. Ju envisioned stags running through an empty night forest. She grabbed the sheets below her. He said something to her, but her brain couldn't pick up clearly.

"Set me free!" she pleaded. He silenced her with another kiss. Her hands reached down for his jeans. The wild run of horses ran through her veins. She choked on Yao's tongue in the process of stripping him down. He instantly pulled back.

"Are you alright?" he whispered. Ju gives him a cat-like smile as she nodded. It was all a game to her, really. He was the hunter and she was the willing prey.

"I want you inside of me," she said. Yao looked taken-aback for a long pause. Ju raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is that a problem?" she asked. The older man shook his head. He hadn't expected to see so much blue come out of his former business partner's mouth given her upbringing; but for some reason, he couldn't help but to be turned on at the same time.

"Yes, my lady!" his voice boomed throughout the whole room. His next direct kiss sprung crystals up from the empty hunger that plague her for minutes by this point.

_Love me! Love me! Love me!_

That mentally led to the savage wedding as Yao dug into her pound after pound. Ju bit her lip and moaned as the sea came and swallowed her up in the climax.

That's when reality and regret began to sink in.


	16. Pillow Talk, Worry, and Time

Match Sixteen: Pillow Talk, Worry, and Time:

-Ju-

I lifted my head from Yao's chest.

"We can't keep doing this," I told him. He gave me a puzzled look at my statement.

"Why is that?" he asked. I frowned at him as he held me.

"It's unprofessional!" I complained, "We shouldn't be doing this. It was the mistake the first time."

"Are you saying that that night was a mistake?" he asked.

"No!" I said, shaking my head, "I don't mean it like that. I mean, it was good, but it wasn't supposed to happen." He kissed me on the forehead.

"What are you so worried about?" Yao asked. I stared at him rather silent. My lower lip trembled. I didn't know how to form _those_ thoughts into words that didn't sound ridiculous. I knew that I couldn't dodge this bullet if I tried. I just didn't expect it to come for me so soon. I lowered my head.

"I don't want to lose myself," I muttered as if I was alone.

"What?" I heard him ask. I looked him back in the eyes. I rested my head on his chest.

"It's nothing," I brushed off, "Nothing, nothing. Just mumbling to myself."

"No," he told me, "I want to know why you would believe that a relationship with me like this would make you lost yourself." Part of me wished that I hadn't voiced my thoughts now. I could just change the subject and drop it from there if I wanted.

"I can't really explained it myself," I spoke up, "I just feel that I will lose something that I can never get back if we keep on like this." I paused to look Yao in the face. The confused look on his face didn't change. I felt my stomach turn.

_Come on! Say something, anything! Your stares are killing me!_

I felt compelled to say something else when Yao asked me a question that threw me off kilter.

"What are you so afraid of?" he asked.

"Huh?" I asked.

"You sound like a relationship with me like this terrifies you," my partner reasoned, "I am your first?" I pressed my lips together.

"Well… yes… and no," I admitted. Yao raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yes and no?" he asked. I pushed my hair behind my ears.

"Yes, as in the first guy I've slept with," I answered.

"And the no?" he asked.

"You weren't the first boy I loved," I told him. I rested my head back on his chest.

"I wasn't?" Yao asked. I shook my head.

"What was his name?" Yao asked.

"It doesn't anymore," I said, " _He_ doesn't matter anymore."

"What do you mean?" my partner asked, "Please tell me more about him. What he was like? Where did you mean him?"

"It's just a long, boring story," I said, "You wouldn't really be interested in my ex."

"It's too late," Yao insisted, "You have my attention now. You might as well tell me." I glanced up at him and his persistence.

"You really sure about this?" I asked.

"Yes!" he said aloud. I shut my eyes for a brief second. _Damn, he's loud._

"Okay," I said, "Do you want the long version or the short version?" He chuckled at my question.

"Either one you want," he said. I breathed in and sighed.

"Okay," I began, "He was a foreigner boy and we were fourteen when I met him at school."

"Was he a transfer student?" Yao asked.

"Uh-hm," I said, nodding, "He was a lovely boy from Belgium. He made my summer lively and exposed me to newer experiences that my father practically closed me off from. I may have come from rich family, but that boy made me feel like a princess."

"You really loved him, did you?" my partner asked. I moved in closer to his body.

"Yes, you can say that," I answered, "I really did love him."

"What happened?" Yao asked. I felt the glow in my face die away.

"My father found out about our relationship and made me break up with him," I said with a sigh.

"But why?" he asked. I frowned as I remembered how that argument turned out in my father's office.

"He wanted the bloodline to stay purely Chinese," I answered with a bitter taste in my voice, "He wouldn't allow his daughter to marry a foreigner." I glanced up to see Yao looking down at me with a disappointed look in his eye. I gave myself a little smile.

"Don't feel bad," I said in a low voice, "That boy's time in this country had expired. He had to go to Belgium after the school year was over. We left contact afterwards and life went on."

"I have one more question," Yao said.

"What?" I asked.

"How far did you go with him?" he asked, "If you didn't sleep with him, then…" I smacked that dirty old man in side under the sheets.

"Ow," he said softly. I gave him a goofy little smile.

"Pervert!" I said, sticking out my tongue at him.

"What?" he asked, "I just wanted to know."

"Heh," I said as I settled back in place on his body again. I paused when happened to look over at the clock.

"Oh crap!" I gasped.

"What's the matter?" Yao asked.

"It's already seven o'clock," I said.

"Huh?" Yao asked as he lifted his head to look at my clock. "Oh, so it is," he said, "What have we been doing all of this time?"

"Lying here and having sex," I pointed out.

"Have we really?" he asked.

"Yes," I said. I glanced up to see him glancing down at me.

"So, what to do now?" he asked. I shrugged my shoulders.

"No idea," I said, "Did you have any plans after coming to see me?" Yao shook his head after he pondered that question.

"Not really," he said, "You?"

"Nope," I said.

"Well, we could just stay here like this until morning if you want," my partner offered. I lifted my head and stared at him.

"We can do that?" I asked.

"Do you want to?" he asked. I rested my head back on his chest and shrugged my shoulders.

"Might as well," I told him. Yao ran his fingers through my hair. I accepted his touch without another thought. This felt nice for now, but I can't help but feel that it's too late to turn back on my personal path of ruin.


	17. Fig

Match Seventeen: Fig:

In late August, Alfred noticed a small bruise on Florence's left ankle while they were walking around in the park.

"Florence, what happened to your ankle?" he asked.

"Hm?" she asked as she looked down at her heel. "Oh," she said, "That's nothing really."

"Nothing?" Alfred asked her, "When did you get this?"

"Three days ago," she said as they took a seat under the gazebo.

"Three days?" the American man asked, "Three days and it still hasn't healed?"

"It's fine," Florence insisted, "It doesn't even hurt me."

"It doesn't?" her friend asked. The tree spirit shook her head.

"I'm fine, really," she insisted. Alfred nodded uneasily, but managed to smile.

"Oh, Alfred," Florence spoke up. The American man turned his attention to her.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Can we stay like this for a while?" she asked as she looked up at him in his lap, "It's a really nice day and we're not really doing anything at the moment." The American man patted her on the head and gave her a little smile.

"Sure," he said. Florence smiled as she drew her chestnut red eyes closed.

"Thanks," she whispered. Alfred made himself smile as he nodded. He waited until she dozed off in his lap before reaching for his phone. The American man kept his eye on his friend as he dialed the number that needed. _Don't wake up yet_ , he thought while the other line.

"Hello?" a young girl answered on the other line. Alfred quickly snapped to attention.

"Lydia," he whispered, "Just the person I wanted to talk to."

"Why?" she asked, "Why are you whispering into the phone?" Alfred glanced down at Florence sound asleep in his lap.

"Dude, have you looked at Florence's ankle lately?" he asked.

"Her ankle?" the girl asked.

"Yeah, there's like this bruise on it," the American man explained, "She says that she's had it for three days now." He stopped talking when he noticed a pause on the phone.

"Lydia?" he asked, "Lydia? What's the matter?"

"Oh," she said in a small voice, "This isn't good."

"What's the matter?" Alfred asked.

"What is the date today?" the girl asked. The American man had to try and think about that answer.

"August thirty-first," he said, "Why? What's wrong?"

"Summer's ending," Lydia said.

"So?" the man asked.

"She's a tree spirit and you know how trees are in autumn and winter?" the girl asked.

"I guess…" Alfred said in a slow tone.

"She'll be getting sick again soon," Lydia said in a low voice, "That bruise on her ankle is the first time. Her body slows down with healing itself and then her health starts to fail until the point that she is bed-ridden."

"Well, is there any way to stop it?" he asked.

"No," the girl replied, "The doctors are giving her pills to slow down the process for the time being. Listen, Alfred could you do me a little favor?"

"Yeah?" the American man asked.

"Could you not mention any of this to my sister?" the girl asked. Alfred looked so puzzled at her words.

"Why not?" he asked.

"You see, she knows when she is about to get sick," the younger sister explained, "She puts on a brave front to keep me from worrying. So could you please play along with her?"

"Sure, I guess…" Alfred mumbled uncertain about this whole plan.

"Thank you," Lydia said before hanging up. The American man lowered his phone as he looked down at the sleeping tree woman in his lap.


	18. Kitsune

Match Eighteen: Kitsune:

Sena stared at the doll on the kitchen counter. Kiku placed a total of twenty in the house. To be honest, it started to creep out his wife.

"Honey, why can't we take these down?" she asked. Sena reached for the doll on the counter, but Kiku grabbed her by the wrist.

"Don't!" he pleaded. Sena turned to her husband.

"Why?" she asked. Kiku shook his head.

"They keep away my nightmares," he said in a quiet voice. His wife blinked at him with confused eyes.

"Your nightmares?" she asked. Kiku nodded as he looked down at his hands. Sena titled her head at him. This wasn't even a joke anymore. Her husband seemed to be closing himself in further and further out of fear that she could comprehend. Even his therapist didn't understand what was going on.

"I can't really make out any of this," he explained to her one day.

"Isn't there any you can do for him?" Sena asked. The therapist shook her head.

"I'm still working on it," he explained. That answer didn't sit well with the woman. Sena looked back at the doll on the counter. Seeing her sitting there just made the feeling of unease much worse. Sena reached out and took hold of the doll by the neck. This time, a sharp chill raced through her body. Her mind opened up to a horrifying image.

So much blackened dust blew everywhere. Screams filled her ears. Tokyo, no all of Japan looked to be on fire. A blackened fifteen-year-old girl stood before her staring with dead eyes. Beside her stood a six-year-old girl holding a stuff bunny to her chest. Fire rose up around them. More screams surrounded her. Corpses on crosses hung above her head in the blackened sky. A light rain of blood fell on her below. Cries of agony joined the screaming. Bone skinny angels dragged around the deserted wasteland before her. The images began to skip and blend together in her mind at a rapid pace.

_What… What is this? Why am I seeing this? Make it stop! Make it stop!_

A dead silence followed behind with a pitch darkness. One voice filled the emptiness.

"Don't let the devil get me."

Sena fell back on the kitchen floor panting with big, shocked eyes. Was this what Kiku saw? She looked over at her husband with his eyes down on the table. The doll watched them the whole time.


	19. Study Time, Treats, and Wondering

Match Nineteen: Study Time, Treats, and Wondering:

-Ju-

Tina, Mei, Qun, and I were studying on Saturday morning. Final exams were coming up and this would determine graduation or repeating. Qun and I were serious to nail this; Tina and Mei… not so much. I glanced to my right and left. If I didn't sit between them, Tina and Mei would try to kill each other.

"Guys," I said with a sigh, "Could you try to get along long enough to get through this?" Mei snorted at my request.

"I'm fine," she said, "Keep that bitch away from me."

"I was going to say the same thing," Tina hissed. I dropped my head and shook it.

"Why are you even here with us?" my American friend asked, "You don't even go to the same school as us!" Mei sat back and snorted.

"I figured why not?" she said, "We're all pretty much taking the same exam."

"Okay," I cut in, "Let's just focus back on the books." My two hostile friends went quiet and returned to their study books.

"Thank you," I said.

"Hey Ju," Qun spoke up, "Did I do this right?"

"Let me see," I said. She slid her history workbook across the low table over my way and I caught with my fingertips. I twirled to read the calligraphy. I picked up my history book and compared the text.

"I think you have the date wrong in the third paragraph here," I said. Qun's face dropped.

"What?" she asked.

"Look here," I said. Qun looked where I was pointing in the textbook.

"Oh!" she said, "I guess I wrote that character backwards."

"It's okay," I said. Suddenly, a knock came on the door. We looked to see Kee poked his head in the door.

"Hey ladies," he said, "Brought you some treats."

"Thanks," I said, "Set it at the door."

"Sure," he replied. Kee left us the tray of mini-dumplings and walked away. Tina turned to me with a smile on her face.

"Oh, look at you, miss clan leader," she said.

"What?" I asked, "Kee's always brought us snacks and food when I do my homework."

"Yep," Mei said, "He doesn't want us to study on an empty stomach."

"Makes sense," Qun said. Tina thought about that and nodded.

"Guess you're right," she said. The second half of studying went along much better than the beginning. As we went over our notes for that final exam, my mind wondered back to my own future. I hadn't even applied for college yet, but I'm still looking. The clan looked pretty good right now. Kee just got accepted into his first college choice thing morning. Chih still waited on his, but I'm still he'll be fine. Mei's already been looking for her choice in designer schools against her mother's wishes.

"Anything to get my goals and piss off that old bitch at the same time," she told me on numerous occasions. I just smiled and waved her off; anything that floats her boat, I guess. Yet, where exactly does that leave me with other than Yao and the clan?

_Yao…_

"Ju?" I heard someone ask on the outside, "Hellooooo?" I looked up to see Tina just inches away from my face. I let off a small squeak and backed up against the wall.

"What?" I asked.

"Why are you zoned out for?" she asked, "We still have to check your work next." It took me a little bit to get what she was saying.

"Oh…" I said, "Sure, here." I shoved over my workbook. I'll work out my stance with Yao later.


	20. Whispering

Match Twenty: Whispering:

-Lydia-

I don't like the chill I have been getting lately. It's not a cold or anything either.

Something awful is coming. I keep having two visions every night.

One vision is of an unnamed city in Japan. It looks so normal on the surface. The people go about their day, not noticing a thing. It's spring there by the looking the cherry blossoms in full bloom. It's all fast-paced and no one has any real worries on their mind. However, I know better. Glass eyes shoot cold glares in my soul.

I find myself slowly backing up out of an unspeakable fear. I don't understand it, really. They don't move and try to attack me; they just in the windows and stare at me. The whole time, I keep feeling something breathing on my neck. I don't know who, but I keep feeling that someone is behind me, watching. I slowly glanced behind me to see. This girl looked about my age and beaten up. Her body and clothing all over covered in back. She looked like she wants to kill me. I try to walk forward as fast as I can, but another girl is blocking my path.

This girl looked about six years old with long black pigtails on the sides of her head. She held a dusty stuffed bunny to her chest as she stared at me. The little white blouse and bright red skirt doesn't ease my nerves. She too has eyes of murder. I whipped around and happened to notice that the blackened girl is now walking towards me. She opened her mouth and let off a loud death rattle with each step. A louder meowing sound makes me jump to see the little girl joining in with her own noise.

I tried to run to the side, but I am joined by another woman in this crowd. She looked the most demonic all them all. Her body is in all white and she reached out for my neck. I keep backing up as my fear grew out of control. I wanted to scream out, but my voice is lost in the silence.

_No… No… No… NO!_

The woman reached out and grabbed by neck.

The other view frightened me just as much. I disappeared into I think is the same city, but it's in ruin and beyond repair. The buildings were half-sunk into the ground. I could barely see anything with the wind harshly blowing the dust and fog around me.

"Hello?" I called out in vain. The sinking feeling of being alone doesn't sit well with my stomach. This looked to be just as bad as the other vision I keep having on other days.

The wind pushed back further into the city. I froze when a sharp wail filled the bleak air in the sky. I whipped to a horrifying site. Humans, I think they look human, holding their head and screaming out in pain. Their voices scream out to die. However, death has rejected them. God turned a deaf ear upon them. One of those crawled over to me with its frail, skeleton-like body. My eyes widened in panic as I sped backwards as fast as I could.

_No, stay away! Stop! Don't come near me!_

That poor creature grabbed onto my foot. I tried to scream as I desperately shook away the bony hand. Again, my voice is swallowed by the silence. The bodies started to pile on top of me as they wailed out in agony. Pretty soon, their darkness consumed my vision. That's when I saw it.

A huge blackened tower reached up to the gray, empty sky above. My eyes widened in terror as one tiny voice filled my ears.

_Don't let the devil get me._

I don't know the source of these visions or how to stop them. Something inside is telling me that they involve my sister, Alfie, his friends, and me if we keep going down this path blindly. So far, I haven't told anyone about these visions, but I have no idea how long I can keep them a secret for much longer. As of right now, the best that I can do is hurl up into a ball and wait for something else to take over my mind from this repeating terror.


	21. Afterglow, Gang of Four, and Doubt

Match Twenty-One: Afterglow, Gang of Four, and Doubt:

-Ju-

I lifted my head from Yao's chest looked at his sleeping face. It's happened again tonight and I still don't know how to stop it. I looked over at my bedroom clock. I have to go back to my school in a few hours. I played back what happened hours earlier.

Yao and I met to talk about expanding the business. He sat rather close as he discussed the ways that we could rent out the building to other associates we worked with. My mind kept running in different directions, trying to stay focused. The next few moments sped by in head before Yao looked up.

"Is there anything you would like to add?" he asked. It pains me to admit, but I lost control and forcefully kissed him on the lips. What made it worse was he didn't stop me. I kept waiting for him to push me away and chastise me, but that never came. Instead, he pulled me in closer to that damn kiss. To make a long story short, I took him back to my room and yes, we had sex. There is no graceful way to put it. That is just what happened. It embarrassed me that I enjoyed the whole ride.

I couldn't get this goofy grin off my face. Judging by the smile on his face, I could tell that Yao enjoyed himself too. I frowned to myself. _I can't keep doing this!_ Yet, my body refused to let me. It embarrassed me to admit it, but Yao was turning into a drug for me. I resolved that I would let it turn out that way, but it already started to mean nothing to me. I rested my head back down on Yao's chest. I could feel his heart beating against my cheek. I closed my eyes as if to take him in. My mind drifted off to Gang of Four. I feel like that song, "Damaged Goods."

"Damaged goods," I sang to myself, "Send them back. I can't work, I can't achieve. Send me back, open the till, give me the change you said would do me good…" I happened to glance down to see Yao peeking down at me. My cheeks pinkened with shocked embarrassed.

"Oh," I muttered, "Sorry, did I wake you?" Yao shook his head.

"Nah," he replied, "What were you singing just now?" I looked down at myself still with pink cheeks.

"'Damaged Goods' by Gang of Four," I said in a quiet voice.

"Gang of Four?" he asked.

"They are a punk band from the seventies," I explained. Yao gave me an odd expression on his face.

"You listen to punk music?" he asked.

"They are Tina's favorite band, actually," I explained as I shifted in piece for a bit, "They kind of rubbed off on me."

"I see," he replied. To tell you the truth, I don't really know why I said this next; it just came out, really.

"You want to hear something?" I asked.

"What?" he asked.

"What exactly am I to you?" I asked in whisper without even thinking.

"You're my partner," Yao said as he patted me on the head. I shook my head.

"Partner in what way?" I asked, "Be honest." The look on his face told me that I lost him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. I frowned and shook my head.

"Forget it," I mumbled at him.

"Ju?" he asked.

"Forget it," I repeated, "Can we please drop it?" I felt him shrug underneath me.

"Fine," he replied. I sighed as my eyes focused back on my clock in the corner.

"Thank you," I muttered. _Why did I even bother to ask that?_ , I wondered. I still don't have an answer to that question.


	22. Poisoned

Match Twenty-Two: Poisoned:

The poison is already flowing through everyone. Nobody can see it, however. Only Ju's two advisers had a slight clue. They knew when they first saw that blood-soaked article in the dead translator's hand. Another one died while trying to translate it. They destroyed it—twice—as a result. Fei and Hen-to freaked out when that old file reappeared. The resurface alone told them that Hell would be coming for them.

They aren't the only ones who feel it.

Everyone else didn't notice a thing. They are too wrapped up with their lives. However, there were early signs. Most of these came right out of Tokyo. Pochi couldn't stay around his master. Kiku looked at his dog with tired eyes. He looked at his pet with a sympathetic smile.

"I'm so sorry, Pochi," Kiku said, "I don't mean to be like this. I don't know what's wrong with me lately." The dog stared at him silent. He still backed away when Kiku tried to pet him again. Sena watched from the doorway with a bad feeling in her stomach.

All animals keep trying to avoid the human countries because they can see the ruin on them. They have a sense about coming change. If humans had the same gift, they could've stopped the wasteland from coming any sooner. However, that isn't really the case this time.

A small number of people can tell that something bad is about to go down. Though, they don't exactly know the details of how bad this coming storm is. The signs are killing them slowly on the inside.

But… What does all of this have to do with the hungry wasteland just under their feet? Why doesn't it outright reach them and consume them alive? Believe it or not, it seems to be waiting for the right moment to strike. Just like a skilled thief in the night, it waited for the perfect opportunity to swallow them up in its abyss.

Right now, Ju and her high school friends have an exam to complete this morning. There is no time to worry, yeah? Well, don't get too far ahead…


	23. Exam, Drawing, and Pass

Match Twenty-Three: Exam, Drawing, and Pass:

-Ju-

Today, I have my exam. I am confident to do this. The exam will help me graduate or fail. If the latter happens, my father will roll in his grave. I just don't want to have another battle with him in my head. I prefer to let him rest in peace.

I walked into the classroom like it was a normal day. Only a small amount of students were waiting inside. A proctor sat in the back corner already. I took my usual seat as I cleared my mind. I can't have Yao, work, or anything else in my mind. This moment is critical to my future. I kept up this mentality as the students walked into the classroom. Qui plopped down next to me at her desk.

"Good luck," she whispered.

"Thank you," I whispered back. The teacher walked into the room and slammed the test books on her desk.

"Good morning, class!" she greeted us.

"Good morning!" we greeted back.

"Will the class representatives please pass out the exam books?" the teacher asked. A blonde American girl and myself stood up and passed out the books. Once we sat back down, the teacher set the clock.

"You may now begin," she said. The students picked up their pencils and got to work. I finished in about an hour and thirty minutes. I wasn't in college yet, so I had to sit at my desk and wait. I looked down at my scrap paper and felt like drawing. My doodles started out normal. I drew little flowers, cat heads, and bunnies. I can't be exactly sure what happened from there, but my art took quite a darker tone.

The cat faces looked pretty demonic. Their glowing eyes and fangs made me shiver. I shook my head to myself.

_Why am I drawing this?_

It didn't end there. The cats were joined by Japanese Kanji. I myself didn't recognize it all. I couldn't even get myself to stop. My hand started to shade back and forth while I was at it.

_Stop! Stop!_

My hand flipped over the picture and began to draw a face. The bangs covered up the small eyes with the nose and the upper half of the mouth. I freaked out as I began to shade the whole face black. Those eyes hidden behind the hair gave me such a heart attack, but I couldn't stop drawing. Something or someone wanted me to tell the truth. I shook my head to myself.

_Somebody stop me!_

I got my wish when the clock on the teacher's desk rang loud enough to startle me out of my trance. I looked up see her cutting it off.

"Pencils down!" she commanded, "Turn in your test books at the front desk as you leave the room." The students filed out as their test books piled up on her desk. I didn't talk or look at anyone for the rest of my exams. The girl's face only grew stronger as the day wore on. Who was she and what was she trying to tell my in that drawing?

A little ease came over my mind when I learned that I passed all of my exams. However, this was eclipsed with the dread of that picture. I had no choice; I was going to ask Fei, Hen-to, and even Yao. I decided to not let up until I got the answers I wanted.


	24. Cyprus

Match Twenty-Four: Cyprus:

Every week, Florence went to the doctor to check her condition. She finds it easier to go with someone else. Usually, Lydia goes with her. This time, Alfred and her younger sister are with her. Right now, said two people are waiting in the waiting room for her. Neither one spoke as they listened at the clock ticking over their heads. Lydia glanced over at him.

"Can you handle any of this?" she asked aloud. Alfred glanced over at her.

"Huh?" he asked. The girl turned to completely face him.

"She will get sick again soon," she warned him.

"She told me all about it," Alfred replied.

"You sure about that?" Lydia asked. The American man looked at her with a stern look on his face.

"Do you not like me or something?" he asked. The girl frowned and shifted her eyes away from him.

"Not really," she mumbled to herself. Alfred frowned in disappointment.

"Why not?" he whimpered. She folded her arms across her chest.

"I don't trust you," she muttered under her breath.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Tell me," Lydia said, "What is Florence to you?" Alfred gave her a blank look.

"She's a friend," he said.

"Just a friend?" the younger sister asked.

"Well, yeah," the American replied. Lydia leaned back frowning.

"Then why are you so cute to her like this?" she muttered to herself. Alfred tilted his head at that question.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," the girl lied through gritted teeth. Alfred himself started to get rather annoyed with this game.

"Look!" he snapped, "Why do you keep asking me all of these stupid questions?" Lydia tightened her fists on her lap.

"Will you be able to handle her illness in the fall and winter?" she asked.

"What?" the American man asked.

"I told you that she's tree spirit," Lydia explained through clenched teeth, "Usually they die within a year. Thanks to all of the medicine she's been on, Florence has been able to live for the past ten years. But, there's no way to tell when her body will start reject them." She whipped around to Alfred glaring at him. "I'm asking you now," she said sternly, "Can you handle such misery that she will endure again this year? If not, go far away and never see us again! Tell me right now." Alfred clenched his own fists.

"Yes!" he hissed, "I can do it!" Lydia sat back once more and snorted.

"Liar," she muttered to herself, but loud enough for Alfred to hear her. He was about to speak again when they heard the door swing open. The pair looked up to see Florence walking out to waiting room.

"Everything okay?" she asked. Alfred and Lydia sat up straight in their chairs with forced smiles on their faces.

"Fine," they lied, "Everything's fine."

"Ready to go?" the tree spirit asked.

"Yes," Lydia replied.

"Sure," Alfred said. As they walked out of the doctor's office together, Alfred tried to think of another way to get Lydia to trust and like him while she in turn tried to think of ways to test his loyalty to her sister.


	25. University, Nervous, and Habit

Match Twenty-Five: University, Nervous, and Habit:

-Ju-

I made it; I got to graduate on time. Just this morning, I learned that I got into my first choice university when I went down to check the mail. In the fall, I will go to Tongiji University. Why did I choose that one for my first choice? Well, I wanted to see where my mother went to college before she married my father. He talked about how much fun she had there.

"That was the first time I ever saw her glow," Father told me when I was nine years old. I didn't really want to go to college in Beijing, but I can't really go too far because of the clan. My father was right; it would become my cage until I die. Don't get me wrong, I love this clan and my "family." It's just, I know I will get restless and want an escape from time to time. In a way, I envy my siblings for getting the freedom to escape when they want to.

I froze in my thoughts as my body went stiff in my bed with sudden fear. Somehow, being able to leave the clan is the least of my worries.

I placed my pillow over my head. My drawing during the exam didn't leave my head. I had no idea who that was. I've never seen that girl in my life. Yet, I see her every time I close my eyes when I am alone. I want to ask about her and that mysterious file that I found, but I get the feeling I won't get a straight answer. Fei, Hen-to, and Yao refuse to tell me anything. They keep trying to dodge my questions. However, that stupid drawing isn't the only thing.

Every time I sleep at night, I hear this voice whispering in the darkness. I tried to identify the person speaking, but I can never see their face. I called out to them.

"Hello?" I asked, "Who's there? What do you want?" I never got a response. Instead, the only thing I hear is that one phrase that refuses to leave my head even after I awake.

_Don't let the devil get me._

I don't know what that means. I tried to ask Fei what that meant, but he went into a panic.

"I don't know what you are talking about! Don't ask such a thing ever again!" he shouted. I remember that his reaction really freaked me out. So much so, that I didn't even bother to ask Hen-to or Yao about it.

I cringed as that other worry popped up in my head. Yao… I still haven't figured out what to do with him. To tell you the truth, I find myself getting more and more confused with him as the days wear on. I have to keep seeing him every week because he is my business partner. However, that just adds onto the problem at hand. I huddled up into a ball in my bed. I don't exactly know where to begin with him.

On the one hand, I must confess that the sex between us is hot. It gets better each time we do it. I keep promising that I'll stop, but I don't seem to know how. I can't seem to quit. Strangely, Yao has become my worry stone. The dreams and that girl don't appear. I think I need him again. I closed my fist to my chest. I really don't want to do this. Surely, I can survive one night in my bed alone. I don't need a man to help me sleep. I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself, right? Right?

I reached over and picked up my phone. I pleaded in my mind as the other line rang.

"Hello?" Yao asked on the other line. I rolled over in bed with my phone to my ear.

"Hey, I'm so sorry to call you so late," I whispered, "Could you come over tonight?"

"Right now?" he asked. I pulled my knees to my chest.

"Why? What's the matter?" he asked sounding rather worried.

"Please just come over," I pleaded.

"Okay, I'll be over," Yao said in a calming voice. I closed my eyes and began to smile.

"Thank you," I whispered. I hung up and held the phone in my chest. I can't seem to quit him.


End file.
